Trump University Fraud Trial May Encounter Constitutional Obstacle If Trump Is Elected (VIDEO)


Trump University’s class action lawsuit may prove Trump to be just another get-rich-quick scammer but it also might encounter a constitutional obstacle. It may seem unlikely or totally unthinkable for some but it could actually happen.

If Trump is elected president, he will have immunity from suit while in office. He cannot be forced to testify and he cannot be sentenced.

As president, Trump must first undergo impeachment proceedings before he can be charged or tried for any criminal or civil suit that is related to his acts as president.

The Supreme Court has ruled that a sitting president has absolute immunity with some exceptions:

“The Supreme Court has ruled that the president has absolute Immunity from civil lawsuits seeking damages for presidential actions. However, the Court ruled in Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681, 117 S.Ct. 1636, 137 L.Ed.2d 945 (1997), that a sitting president does not have presidential immunity from suit over conduct unrelated to his official duties. The holding came in a civil suit brought by Paula Corbin Jones against President Clinton. Jones’s suit was based on conduct alleged to have occurred while Clinton was governor of Arkansas. Clinton had sought to postpone the lawsuit until after he left office.”

The presumptive GOP nominee is set to testify in a class lawsuit after the November 8 presidential election. If the worst nightmare happens and he becomes president, he would be immune from any lawsuit.

Trump will answer the charges against him by a group of would-be businessmen and investors in the now-defunct Trump University. According to the lawsuit, he defrauded the investors who paid up to $35,000 just for attending real estate seminars.

Based on court documents, Federal Judge Gonzalo Curiel ordered that the trial should start in San Diego on November 28, 2016. He did not grant the previous request by the lawyers of Trump to start the trial in February 2017.

According to one of his lawyers, Daniel Petrocelli, Trump plans to attend much of the trial and he is also willing to take the witness stand. On the other hand, there will be a legal obstacle to prosecuting Trump if he is elected as president.

Trump is facing a felony charge that potentially could send him to jail and/or force him to repay the victims plus fines.

Plaintiffs filed the case in 2013 and they are seeking $40 million in refunds with additional penalties and other costs such as attorney’s fees.

Although billed as a university, Trump University is only a web-based education company and it does not even have an accreditation to confer academic degrees or officially recognized business courses.

Many were lured to pay an exuberant amount of money in the Trump’s seminars on real estate because of the promise of actual results. Apparently, it was all just a get-rich-quick scam that made false claims and illegal business practices.

One twist in the story is that Trump University hired a convicted felon as one of its lecturers. James Harris was already a convicted felon for aggravated assault against his own wife when he was hired as an online lecturer.

Aside from the lawsuit, the GOP frontrunner is also facing another similar lawsuit filed by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Trump’s supporters may claim that it is politically motivated but there is real merit in the case.

More than 5,000 online students were misled by the fraudulent scheme of the Trump University. It has not delivered what it promised and it has become a testament to another failed business venture of Trump.

Donald Trump is fond of exaggerating his accomplishments and merits but his multiple failures prove otherwise. This lawsuit may again highlight his incompetence.

The caveat here is that even if Trump is found guilty of fraud, he may only need to comply with the civil claims. He cannot be directly held accountable for a criminal offense without first being impeached. The court cannot issue a subpoena or warrant of arrest against Trump if he is elected as president.

For more on Trump University, see below:

 

Featured image screengrab via YouTube

Homar has been a writer and editor for both print and online publications for more than fifteen years. He also worked for a scientific research institution and for a book publishing house. He currently works as a home-based freelance online writer and copy editor. He is active in various local civic organizations and regularly contributes as a columnist in regional newspapers in the Bicol Region, Philippines.